This right applies equally to children's participation in social and political matters as well as in judicial and administrative proceedings.
[3][4][5] National laws usually define age limits for children to have the right to contact social services on their own initiative, to be heard in judicial and administrative procedures, to act as a litigant or party to a case, to appeal against decisions, and to complain and seek redress.
Special measures nationally can ensure younger children are not excluded from exercising their right to be heard.
[6] For some children, the gender of the interviewer, interpreter, cultural mediator, guardian or care staff may change their willingness to express themselves.
The may depend on the experiences that children have with men and women in their homes and communities, and if in migration, during their journey or in places of destination.
Children might have been instructed or even threatened by third persons to only tell parts of their story, and the child might not trust the police and local authorities can protect them.